Photos: At home with Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey

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Dallas Seavey at his Willow kennel. July 13, 2012

Later this summer, Iditarod 2012 winner Dallas Seavey plans to release his autobiography. The current working title is "Born to Mush" -- fitting, since Seavey comes by his racing genes honestly. He is the grandson of a third place finisher and the son of 2004 winner and career contender Mitch Seavey.

Seavey says he got hooked on mushing when he was just 5 and an old, washed up sled dog of his dad's named "Buster" was the center of his world. "As far as I was concerned he was the best sled dog that had ever been," Seavey said.

Seavey describes his memoir as an easy, inspirational read geared toward young readers that's centered on believing in one's self and having the guts to do what's necessary to achieve your dreams. It's both a history of his life growing up in a mushing family (which he likens to ranching), and part motivational message, the story of how he built his kennel from scratch and went on to become a young champion of not only the Iditarod but also of Alaska's other grueling distance race, the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race. The themes are similar to what he says he tells schoolchildren: maximize your own potential and not someone else's idea about what your abilities or limitations are, and make sure you're reaching for your own dreams.

"You can't lie to yourself," Seavey said.

The message parallels the business side of "Seavey, Inc.," whose main racing sponsor is an Outside company specializing in risk management and regulatory compliance. It's not exactly the intuitive fit that a dog food manufacturer or airline might be for a sled dog kennel. Dogs need to eat and people need to get from point A to point B. But Seavey and J.J. Keller and Associates have figured out there are more substantial themes to build on. ...

Read 'Dallas Seavey, Inc.' by Jill Burke | Complete coverage of Alaska Iditarod